“...my father, he had one of his favorite songs he’d like to play, ’Going Back to Tennessee,’ and, I remember, he would sing, ’Go--ing back, tooooo Tennessee...,’ and he would hit that melody line... and something would just, grab me, and I knew then I was going to be a guitar player.”

Authentically - Doktu Rhute Muuzic

This [other] band was from Holland, but they were doing a lot of Motown songs,

Doktu Rhute Muuzic with James Cotton and Junior Wells (center)

and the guy I was sitting with, the agent that booked me over there...I was saying [to him] “Wow, this band is good!” They sound just like the Temptations, whoever they were playing, [perhaps] Smokey Robinson.

He said “yeah, but it's not authentic,” and it made me think.He said, “You know, it's copied...we like to get the authentic, we like to get the people who actually proudced this music, you know, made this music, wrote this music...”

That’s why, when we go over there, we are revered so much, because, they’re looking at the actual people who lived this music, and these are the people who can deliver these stories, because it’s actually about stories and experiences that you’ve had.

- Doktu Rhute Muuzic

The Name: Doktu Rhute Muuzic

My father was an Herb Doctor, which inspired me to write the song “ROOT DOCTOR.” Ever since, fans around the world call me “DOCTOR ROOT.” In addition to that, I celebrate Kwanzaa. Root Doctor and Kwanzaa play a big part in the etymology and cognate of my name.

The “K” in my first name (D-O-K-T-U) comes from Kwanzaa. Kwanzaa has seven principles, and on my father’s side, I am the seventh child.

My last name (MUUZIC) is a derivative of music and KUUMBA. Music, because I’m a musician, and KUUMBA because it’s the sixth principle of Kwanzaa. On my mother’s side, I am the sixth child.

I only eat plants. Therefore, my middle name is derived from “ROOT.” It is spelled (R-H-U-T-E) employing my father’s initials, Reuben Hytower.